Found art, also known as "objet trouvé" (French for "found object"), is a form of art created from objects that were not originally intended to be artistic. These objects are typically discovered in everyday life and then repurposed or recontextualised by an artist to be viewed as art.
A fresh look at the everyday
A mundane manufactured or natural object might be transported from its natural context into one where we would not expect to encounter it, making us notice it anew; inviting us to look differently, and more deeply. Recontextualising objects questions how an object's meaning can change with context, and to what extent our preconceptions constrain our perceptions.
People transform found objects to reveal their hidden properties and value. Natural materials may be burned and ground or pressed to release dyes and inks for use in further artistic processes. Even pollution might be captured and fixed as part of the man-made environment as part of an artistic construction.
Objects might be left to grow, decay, corrode or be recombined in new and interesting ways. Consider dry rot - the terror of built properties everywhere, but what if you were to watch the weeping mycelium grow through a cascade of fallen branches in a safely enclosing glass case? A home owner's dread fear becomes a thing of beauty, a destroyer of buildings becomes a living specimen viewed under glass.
Bottle cap snake - Museum of International Folk Art - DSC09187 - Folk art item from the collection of the Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA (Public domain image).
An evolving display
We will be adding small pieces of found art to this display over time, brought in to share with you by our friendly Library team, so do stop by from time to time to see what's changed and what's been added. It's certain to be an interesting journey full of unexpected finds!
Sea glass found art jewellery
Famous examples of found art
A famous example of recontextualisation was in 1917 when Marcel Duchamp famously exhibited a urinal crafted to feed back into itself, entitled "Fountain".What purpose can it serve? The urinal is fountain-shaped but operates like half a fountain - functionless without human participation. Is functional design not art? When asked to define beauty by Socrates, one of the Sophists described the beauty of the function of a well-crafted wooden spoon. Found art often asks provocative questions or posits an idea that is central to understanding the exhibit.
Pablo Picasso later created a "Bull's Head" sculpture from a bicycle seat and handlebars. Do we career around like bulls when given transport that allows us to move faster? Does speed confer power, and power responsibility?
